


Actions Have Consequences

by RPGwrites



Series: The Ripple Effect [3]
Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Angst, F/M, Murder in Kadara Port, Roekaar, Tension, Tumblr Prompt, murders
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-05
Updated: 2019-09-13
Packaged: 2020-10-10 14:34:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20529617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RPGwrites/pseuds/RPGwrites
Summary: After they dealt with the Roekaar on Kadara Sara Ryder couldn’t help to think that things were simply too easy. That they should have dealt with the Roekaar differently. She can’t help to wonder if their actions will have lasting consequences. At first, nothing happened and everyone thought they approached the right way. But then something else happened. Was Ryder right, or is this just a coincidence?





	1. Did we make the right choice?

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this chapter using the prompt: “Careful–another compliment and that large head of his might explode.” that [ missmeggo929 ](https://missmeggo929.tumblr.com/) picked on Tumblr. Thank you so much for the prompt!

“All clear,” Reyes said as Ryder shot the last Angara.

_So damn useless._

As if reading her mind Reyes approached the door. Ryder was thankful for that because she didn’t want to talk to him. _He ruined everything._

“Search the bodies,” Ryder ordered. “Let me know if anyone’s alive.”

That earned her some strange glances from her team.

Before any of them could object Ryder sighed, pulling her helmet off, “Just do it.” She felt like she was suffocating. This wasn’t supposed to go like this.

She joined Drack and Peebee seeing if any of the Roekaar survived. They didn’t. She wanted to throw her helmet in frustration.

Her team looked up as if questioning what they should do next, “Let’s get out of here.”

The doors opened easy enough and there Reyes was with a smug smile plastered on his face.

“We couldn’t have done this without you,” Peebee said clearly not having caught on Ryder’s anger.

_Maybe I’m getting good at hiding away my anger, _Ryder thought optimistically.

Peebee’s comment made Reyes’ face shine even brighter. It annoyed Ryder.

“Careful – another compliment and that large head of his might explode.” There was a hint of playfulness in the way Ryder said it, but there was also some anger too.

The tension was surrounding the four people in the room. And suddenly the room shrunk and felt impossibly small. “I think I’ll wait in the Nomad,” Peebee said. She must’ve felt it as well.

Drack’s gaze made turns between Ryder and Reyes, and without a word, he followed Peebee outside.

Reyes carefully watched as the door slid open and closed again before speaking, “I thought you’d be happy.” Ryder didn’t know how he did it but he sounded casual. He made it sound like he gave Ryder a gift. This was _not_ a gift.

“We work together,” Ryder emphasized every word. “That what you did wasn’t working together.”

“She took your weapons,” Reyes protested. “I gave you a distraction.”

“And now there's no one to question!” Ryder protested back. She couldn't understand how Reyes could not see that.

“For what?”

“For what!?” she repeated. “You know this didn't solve anything.” Ryder didn’t precisely answer his question but she didn’t see the need to do it.

“Except for the murders.”

Ryder pinched the breach of her nose in frustration and closed her eyes, “For all, we know there could be still Roekaar. There might be murders that will happen in the future because of this.” _It will be all your fault, _she thought but didn’t say it out loud. She knew herself, she might regret it later. “And their blood, no matter the colour, will be on your and my hands.”

“That won't happen,” Reyes was sure of himself. A bit too sure if someone would ask her.

Ryder snorted, “You can't know that.” She looked at him for a couple of seconds, staring into his hazel eyes. Her mind made up and she spoke again, “I'm leaving. Having a debate with you is absolutely useless.”

Before Reyes could say another word Ryder stormed off.

* * *

In the Nomad both Peebee and Drack didn't say a word. Ryder could see Drack wanted to say something but thought better off it.

They were surrounded by uncomfortable silence and they couldn't get on the Tempest fast enough.

As Ryder stood in the meeting room deciding where to go next she was reminded about a meeting they had not too long ago.

Drack and Vetra went off to explain why exactly Ryder should pick the planet they wanted to go to. Sometimes it felt like when Ryder finished one assignment she got ten new ones that were screaming for her attention.

The question was which one was more important? And that was exactly the problem because both were.

In the end, Ryder decided to go to Elaaden. She could do more work there and it was a good time to visit the Krogan colony.

_That can only go good, right?_

After she has set a course Ryder went to her quarters checking the dozen unread messages she had. One of them were even from Reyes but she was too mad at him to open it.

Reyes wasn't responsible. The whole Roekaar situation Reyes was too calm. Too patient. Too everything. Usually people isn’t as calm as that. Reyes seemed like those people that can keep cool in the most stressful situations. And it infuriated Ryder. He can't be calm all the time, can he? That's not possible.

Ryder could take stressful situations any day, but that didn't mean she’ll keep calm about every situation. After all, patience was not Ryder's strong suit. That was one thing she was really bad at.

Even though Ryder knew Reyes for a short period he frustrated her. There was something about him, something that she couldn't put her finger on. It was eating at her.

_He still owes me that drink._

Ryder was very tempted to get that drink. Until now. It was unbelievable how she needed to pay for his drink at their first meeting. She had a feeling that Reyes never paid for his own drinks.

And he always gets away with it.

They were talking to Morda, the leader of the Krogan colony when Ryder’s omni-tool pinged. And with it, silence came. Morda had a deathly stare and its mark was Ryder.

“Am I boring you, Pathfinder?” Morda spit each word out carefully. It was as if she was looking for another reason to dislike Ryder.

_I’m the Pathfinder, of course, there will be times my omni-tool goes off._ But she couldn’t say that to her, that is not the way Morda will see it.

She already hated Ryder, and in normal situations, she wouldn’t give a damn what people think, but this isn’t a normal situation. She needed every advantage with them.

“No. No,” Ryder said as casual as she could. “It’s not important,” she said without looking at the notification. _It might be. Who knows?_ Ryder could change the settings. But, emergencies can happen, and she needs to be aware of them.

“Well, this went nowhere,” Vetra said once the conversation was over.

“We’ll need to meet up with Strux again.”

* * *

After dealing with the Krogan colony Ryder and her team stayed on Elaaden for weeks. A lot needed to be done.

The heat was something to get used to, but Ryder didn’t hate the heat as much as Liam did. He couldn’t stand it, and for that reason, Ryder didn’t take him to most of the missions.

That night she got a request for a vid-call from Reyes. After they dealt with the Roekaar she was angry at him for a while. Peebee and Drack who was there on the mission left hints that Ryder overreacted.

That wasn’t her perspective. That wasn’t the right way to deal with them. It was a shortcut and in her experience, those never end well.

_I’m still waiting for the other shoe to drop. _

But the other shoe never dropped. At least, not yet. There was no news about the Roekaar on Kadara. Reyes said many times over that this meant they were truly no more on Kadara. After a while, Ryder laughed it off. But she always had this feeling she could never shake off.

“I’ll take it in here.” Ryder was in her quarters. After another hot day where Ryder did a lot of favours for a lot of people, she didn’t feel like taking it in the meeting room. Besides she didn’t know what type of call this was.

It wasn’t long until Reyes’ holo appeared on the video feed. One look at him answered her question. He looked rough. She wasn’t sure what time it was in Kadara but from the look of Reyes, he had a pretty rough couple of hours.

Reyes never looked tired but here he did. And everything about his look told Ryder this was business. Very serious business.

“What happened?” It was the first words that slipped out of Ryder’s mouth.

“Not even a hello?” Reyes tried sounding like his usual self but he failed. She could hear the weariness in his voice.

“Reyes,” his name came as a warning, “What's going on?”

Now wasn't the time for games.

Reyes led out a sigh, it was more a sigh that told her he was exhausted than being frustrated. “I need your help.”

Reyes was very vague and usually, Ryder didn’t need to pull information out of him. And yes, she only worked with him twice before but he was acting very different. “I’ll need you to give me details.”

“Some of my shipments went missing.” That could be why he was being so vague. Reyes knew she didn’t approve of his smuggling business.

His smuggling business had nothing to do with her. The first time they’ve met she came onto the conclusion that he was a smuggler. And she couldn’t hide her disapproval away from him. So maybe this was why.

“That’s it?” Ryder asked she was expecting a little more than that.

“No, but it’s easier to show you.”

Usually, Ryder would’ve said no, but by judging this conversation something bad must’ve happened. But why didn’t he want to tell her over the call? “Alright,” she said with a sigh. She could use a little break from Elaaden. “I’ll be there in a couple of days.”

* * *

On their way to Kadara Vetra told Ryder some of the rumours that’s been flying around in Kadara. There was an increase in murders. Murders itself wasn’t suspicious, it was Kadara. Every man was there for themselves. It was about the connection between the victims.

It wasn’t targeted on one species or all of the people in the port. It was mainly targeted on people in the business of smuggling.

“Maybe it’s the competition,” Ryder suggested.

“No,” Vetra disagreed. “I looked into it. It doesn’t fit.”

“So you knew about this for a while?”

“Yes,” Vetra confirmed. “If I bring every issue I come across we’ll never defeat the Archon.”

Ryder had to admit to herself, at least that Vetra had a point. The Pathfinder team couldn’t solve every problem. That was just impossible.

“So, you want to check it out?” Ryder asked. If Vetra didn’t want to, she probably wouldn’t have brought it to Ryder’s attention.

“Sure, it might be something worth to look at.” She placed her talons on the meeting room’s railings. “We’re already on our way to Kadara. Might as well see what’s going on.”

“Send me what you have.”

The rest of the way to Kadara Ryder spent her free time going through the data that Vetra gave her. All evidence pointed to Vetra being right. There was a pattern in the details. This wasn’t about competition. All of the smuggling groups were targeted.

Ryder couldn’t help to wonder if this had something to do with Reyes’ call. In Vetra’s data there was no evidence of stolen goods, and just by looking at the evidence there was nothing that indicated that the two was connected. Ryder’s reasons were the timing of his call and how the two had to do with smuggling. But she didn’t have enough information to be sure enough.

Did Reyes lie to her? Were there no stolen goods? Or did he just left the part out about the murders? After all, Reyes was very vague in his call.

Ryder needed to have a chat with him.

* * *

The first thing Ryder did when they arrived at Kadara was to go to Kralla’s Song. Not much have changed since Ryder saw the port last. She knew the bar would be the best place to find rumours.

“Whiskey,” Ryder said as soon as she saw Umi, “Neat.”

“Long time, no see Pathfinder,” The asari bartender commented while pulling out a glass and pouring some liquid that was apparently Ryder’s whiskey.

“Been busy,” Ryder said before she downed the whiskey. It burned her throat. Ryder wasn’t sure where Umi got her whiskey, but it sure tasted different than the Nexus’ whiskey. Strangely enough there was just something about this whiskey that Ryder preferred. 

“Sure,” Umni said unimpressed. “So what can I do for you?” she said when she took Ryder’s empty glass.

“I hear there’s been some murders going around,” Ryder said, it might’ve been too casual for Ryder’s liking but she didn’t want to sound too serious in front of Umi. After all Ryder was still learning the ropes of Kadara. “You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

“Pay for your drink first,” Umi said.

Ryder activated her omni-tool and transferred the funds. Just for in case Ryder paid a little extra.

“Good,” Umi said, she made no mention of Ryder’s little tip. “You can never be sure enough who pays for their own drinks.”

“So, what do you have?” Ryder asked. She wasn’t on a timeframe but she needed to get to the point.

“Well, I’m sure you heard about the rumour that the murders from a couple of weeks ago was from the Roekaar,” Umi started.

_It was more like a fact, but okay._

“Yeah,” Ryder confirmed. No need to spark a whole conversation about the Roekaar. That will get them nowhere.

“Things started to settle down here. People were less anxious.” _Or more like what was normal for Kadara, _Ryder thought. Things was far from normal here, people were unhappy. “And then,” Umi went on, “there was more murders. Nothing too serious.”

If Ryder was anywhere else she would’ve laughed, but not because it was funny. _Since when is murders not serious?_

“There are bound to be still murders,” Umi said and Ryder couldn’t help to feel that Umi somehow knew what she was thinking. “As the days went on the murders increased, first the people of the port thought it was random.” _As if murder is ever random._ “But as more smugglers were killed many weren’t that sure anymore.”

“Just murders?” Ryder questioned. “No shipments that have gone missing?”

“I don’t know of any shipments,” Umi said and Ryder wasn’t sure if she believed her or not. “Why? You have a source?”

Ryder couldn’t exactly call it a source, even though she had gone through the data she still wasn’t sure if the two were connected. And Reyes could be lying. “No source,” she said. “I call it a gut feeling.”

“Okay,” Umi said. She gave Ryder an unconvinced look.

“Any idea who’s committing these murders?” It was a long shot but Ryder had to ask.

“Can’t help you with that,” Umi said. “If you’re staying much longer you’ll need to buy another drink.”

“No thanks,” Ryder didn’t think she would be able to get any other information out of Umi. “I need to get going.”

* * *

The look that Ryder saw on Reyes’ face she would described as… well she didn’t exactly know what he looked as. But in the short period of time she had gotten to know him she never saw him in that state.

“Hey,” she approached slowly. Ryder wasn’t sure what the best way was to approach him.

“You came,” he said. It almost sounded like her doubted she would make the trip.

“Yeah, it sounded important.” Then she added to make it clear that she didn’t just came because of him, “I have some things here to take care of.”

“Your team isn’t with you?” It was a fair question. Ryder always brought two crew members with her when she dropped by. This was the first time she didn’t.

“They have their own things to take care of in the port.” It was the truth, but that wasn’t Ryder’s whole reason. “You want to tell me what’s going on?”

“I need your help with a problem of mine,” Reyes started.

“Your missing shipments,” Ryder started where they left the conversation the last time they talked.

“Yes,” Reyes answered even though she didn’t ask a question.

“Is the murders and missing shipments connected?”

For a moment, there was a glance of hesitation in Reyes’ eyes. It was as if he didn’t want to admit it. “Yes,” he finally answered.

“Why didn’t you just tell me about the murders when you called?”

“It’s a complicated situation,” Reyes started, but when he saw the look of disbelief in Ryder’s eyes he sighed. “You never know how secure the channel is.”

_How secure the channel is? _Ryder thought that was odd. Why would Reyes care about that? But she decided to let it go.

“Why does everyone knows about the murders, but not the missing shipments?” Ryder asked the question that bothered her the most.

“Short answer. Not many know it’s connected.”

“Why? How do you know it’s connected?” Reyes knew all kinds of things and it was very suspicious. Ryder needed to know how he knew.

“It happens with the murders,” Reyes started to explain. “The shipments goes missing with the smugglers. No evidence of missing shipments.”

“Wait,” Ryder said, wanting to make things clearer for herself. “Do you mean when the smugglers gets murdered or…”

“The smugglers disappear first, “Reyes said and she couldn’t help to raise both of her eyebrows. “Nobody knows what happens with them between the time they go missing and turns out dead.”

“So these people are after something?”

“That’s what I’m thinking.”

“Signs of torture?” Ryder wasn’t sure if she wanted the answer.

“Some, yes.”

“Well, that’s peachy,” Ryder said in a tone that suggested it wasn’t peachy at all.

“I have a lead,” Reyes said. “That’s why I need your help.”

“My fancy AI?” Ryder asked as she remembered how Reyes asked her for help the last time.

“Among other things,” Reyes smirked.


	2. Best To Trust Your Gut

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter using this prompt: “How can you be so calm right now?” that [ obvidalous ](https://obvidalous.tumblr.com/) chose on Tumblr. Thank you so much!! I really like this prompt for F!Reyder.

The next day Ryder gathered her team and went to the place where she and Reyes agreed to meet up.

“So this is the place, huh?” Peebee asked as Ryder parked the Nomad.

“Yup,” Ryder opened her door and took a look outside to see if Reyes’ shuttle was there.

_Reyes is late. Again._

“So…” Vetra began when Ryder got into the Nomad again. “Do we go in or…”

“We wait,” Ryder said. “It’s his mission. We’re waiting for him.” The words floated in the Nomad. _I'm not going to let things go as last time._

Time slowed down. Every now and then Ryder activated her omni-tool to check the time. Where they only waited another half an hour it felt like an eternity. Ryder hated to wait. She hated the silence. It was half an hour she would never get back.

Vetra and Peebee were deep into a conversation. Ryder didn’t pay attention to what they were saying. She was taking this time to catch up on her emails. She opened her door when she heard another shuttle. This wasn’t the first shuttle she heard. Every time she took a look if it wasn’t Reyes’ shuttle.

_This better be him. _Luckily this time it was.

“Took you long enough,” Ryder said when Reyes walked out of his shuttle. “What the hell took you so long?”

“Had things to take care off,” Reyes’ short and vague answer came.

The four of them readied their weapons as they approached the building. Ryder wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. The only thing Reyes said was that he had a clue leading him to this place.

Ryder was tired of pushing for answers because that’s what she’s been doing this whole time. So she did as much research she could about the location but couldn’t find out much. After all, this is the Badlands.

When they got to the door, she signalled the rest to stop. She tried to open it but of course, it was locked.

“Can you bypass the door, SAM?”

“One moment,” the AI replied.

It wasn’t long until SAM did his job and the door went open. As soon as the door opened they were met with hostile Angara.

As Ryder fought using her biotics and assault rifle she tried to identify them. She had hoped she was wrong but as she and her team killed more and more it felt like it was obvious.

She saw the same anger and hatred on them as the other Roekaar she fought before.

They started to search the bodies after Ryder glowed blue and Pushed the last Angara.

“You don’t know for sure this is the Roekaar,” Reyes said as Ryder concentrated over what information SAM gave her about the results. It felt like Reyes was trying to cover his butt.

Then she remembered something her dad used to say. He used to say that you should never rush things if you don’t have all the facts.

Ryder was pretty sure the Roekaar was involved but she couldn’t help to listen to the advice her dad gave her. She always took the lessons Alec Ryder give her seriously. Time and again it helped her out of tough situations.

“You’re right,” Ryder sighed. “Let’s keep searching.”

What they found wasn’t much. No signs of other species. All DNA they found were Angaran.

“So the victims weren’t killed here,” Ryder came to the conclusion.

“That is correct Pathfinder,” SAM said. Even though Ryder didn’t ask a question.

“And this was the perfect spot for them,” Ryder thought out loud and with it faces with questions looked at her.

Realizing she said her thoughts out loud she explained, “This was a base for the outcasts, but a couple of months ago the collectives cleared them out.” Ryder recalled what information she found about this place. “Nobody is precisely sure why but not long afterward it was abandoned.”

“Which made it perfect for the…” Vetra trailed off. Roekaar was the tip of her tongue but she caught her mistake in time, “… these people.”

“That’s what I was getting at,” Ryder said. Then she studied Reyes' reaction, but he had none. “I take it you knew about this?” she asked him.

“Yes,” Reyes said. “The way they got the building doesn't matter.”

“I disagree,” Ryder said. “It can help us find out what they're after.”

“Do we know what they're after?” Reyes seemed as frustrated as Ryder felt.

Ryder didn't answer. It was obvious that they still didn't know what the Rokaar ­- or these people - were after.

“And here are some of the missing shipments,” Peebee assumed.

“That’s correct,” Vetra and Reyes answered together and with it, they gave each other strange looks.

Ryder wasn’t surprised at all, with Vetra’s history working with smugglers.

“But that’s not all of them,” Reyes said as he gave the missing shipments another look. “Not by a long shot.”

“So where are the other shipments?” Ryder wondered out loud. Her question floated in the air and none of them had the answer.

“So we have nothing,” Reyes said, sounding disappointed. It was to be expected of course. They might have some of the missing shipments, but it was still not enough.

“Maybe not,” Vetra said, and with that everyone turned their attention to whatever Vetra was currently busy with. She was holding a datapad.

In all likelihood, it might have been nothing but it was worth the look. 

“Dammit,” Vetra said. From the looks of it, she couldn’t access it. But then again SAM might be of some help.

“Can you access it SAM?” Ryder asked as she took the datapad from Vetra.

“One moment.”

It wasn’t long until the information appeared before Ryder’s green eyes. She frowned and chewed the bottom of her lip in concentration.

“Found anything?” Peebee asked in anticipation. When Ryder looked up she saw four curious gazes, wondering what information was in her hands.

She shrugged, “Notes mostly,” she said distractingly. Reading while talking wasn’t exactly Ryder’s strong suit. “But also a location?” Ryder didn’t mean to say it as a question but that’s how it came out. She found it strange that they would leave a location in the open like this.

Reyes frowned, “You aren’t sure if it is a location?”

Ryder looked up from the datapad once again to look at him, “It’s a location, yes. But I’m not sure if we should go there.”

“Why?” he asked in return.

“Because, why is it here in the open?” Ryder asked. And she knew none of them could give her an answer.

Or that is what she thought.

“It wasn’t in the open,” Reyes disagreed. “It was on a locked datapad.”

“An easily hacked datapad.” At this point, neither Peebee nor Vetra decided to contribute to this conversation. Ryder wasn’t exactly sure why.

Reyes frowned yet again, “How do you know that?”

That was a good question. It was mostly a feeling, one she could prove by just asking SAM a question. If she was correct SAM didn’t take very long to unlock the datapad. With a harder decryption, SAM might’ve taken a minute or two longer. But for Ryder, he unlocked it too fast.

“It doesn’t matter,” Ryder dismissed his question.

Ryder also knew Reyes was right. It was the only lead they had. One they needed to follow because if they didn’t then it would be a dead end. And Ryder knew she needed to see where all the missing shipments and murders lead to.

“Let’s just go to the location,” Ryder said. “We’ll meet you there.”

* * *

While Ryder was heading to their location she had a private conversation with SAM, “Was I right? Was it an easy decryption?” She knew she wouldn't need to specify what she was asking about.

“There were easier decryptions in the past,” SAM said. That didn’t exactly answer Ryder’s question though.

She needed to use a different approach. “In Andromeda, in the time I have been the Pathfinder you’ve done more challenging decryptions than this one?”

“Yes,” SAM confirmed.

“On datapads that were found?”

“Yes,” he confirmed again. “Though I was capable of decrypting other datapads they weren’t impossible to hack. They did, however, took more time than the one that was found today.”

And she had her answer.

“Do you think this place will be big enough to hide away the stolen shipments?” Ryder asked Vetra as they approached the building.

“Possibly,” Vetra said, sounding not 100% sure of herself. “It’s hard to say.”

It was one of the biggest buildings Ryder saw in the Badlands. According to her, she might think they could store it here, but then again she didn’t know the exact number of stolen shipments.

“Be ready,” Ryder said while she walked over to where Reyes’ shuttle was.

“You’re not the only one that thinks this is a trap,” Vetra said.

With how her conversation went over with Reyes it wasn’t surprising to her that Vetra spoke her thoughts. But she decided to add nothing more.

“You’re ready?” Ryder asked Reyes.

“Let’s get this over with,” Reyes said. “Do you really think it’s a trap?”

“Yes,” this all seemed little too convenient. “Why leave it there?” Ryder asked again before she could stop herself.

“Because that’s the place where they work?” It was meant to sound like a suggestion, but the words out of Reyes’ mouth sounded like a question.

“Maybe,” Ryder said unconvinced. “Or maybe they were expecting us.”

“Why?”

“Where did you get your tip?” Ryder knew she ignored Reyes’ question, but she couldn’t tell him why. She had a bad feeling about this.

“A friend.”

That did it. Ryder hated secrets, and yes she knew Reyes had quite a few of them. But, when you’re working with someone you shouldn’t hide things that’s crucial to the mission. “Can’t you be vaguer?” Ryder’s sarcastic answer came.

“I told you what is necessary.”

“No, you didn’t,” Ryder said and everybody stopped walking. “If you did, you would’ve told me about the murders when you first called me. You would have told me what exactly these people stole and you would have told me who this _friend_ is.” Ryder massaged her temple in frustration. “But, what did you do? You gave vague answers. Vague Reyes! I know you don’t know me that long, but one thing you should know is that I can’t work with that. I need all of the information.”

Reyes took a breath to say something, but before he could say anything Ryder spoke again, “You know what? This won’t matter. Let’s see what we have here. This isn’t the place nor the time for this conversation.”

So everyone kept on walking until they reached the steps. There were two doors. One on the ground floor and one on the second.

“Let’s split up,” Ryder said. “Reyes, you’re with me, we’re taking the steps.” She looked at Vetra and Peebee, “You two take the ground floor.”

Reyes gave her a puzzled look. Clearly, he didn’t think she would take him with her. But for her, it was better. She wasn’t completely sure if she could trust Reyes, so she’d rather have him go with her and keep an eye on him.

When Peebee and Vetra left to take the ground floor, Reyes and Ryder started to take the steps, he started, “Why did y-“

“No talking,” Ryder interrupted. “Concentrate on the mission. It’s your mission in case you’ve forgotten.”

Whatever Reyes wanted to say died on his lips. He shut his jaw and they moved forward.

But, yet again this door was locked. “SAM,” Ryder spoke through her private channel. “Is Vetra and Peebee already inside? Was their door locked as well?”

“Their door was unlocked,” SAM said.

Without realizing it Ryder spoke out loud. “So if this was a trap, they wanted us to go through that door, unless…”

“What are you talking about?” Reyes asked.

Before Ryder could explain SAM warned them, “I’m detecting explosives through that door.”

“Oh crap,” Ryder said in response. Before Ryder could run it was too late.

* * *

Ryder woke up with a ringing in her ears. Her body felt stiff and sore but she wasn’t exactly sure why.

That was until she looked up, and instead of being on the stairs she saw the stairs above her head.

_Well, looks like I fell off with the impact of the explosion. _

She looked around, looking if she could find Reyes but she couldn’t. Slowly she got up and with it she got dizzy.

_Where the hell is Reyes?_

She walked slowly to the steps again, with each step her right side felt more and more uncomfortable. It wasn’t long until she saw Reyes, he was on the steps. Clearly just getting conscious as well.

As she walked up to him she froze. The damage that was done on the stairs had her attention. The only reason why Reyes didn’t catch her attention was that he seemed to be okay. He got up by himself. From the quick look she shot him, he might be nearly as stiff and sore as she was.

Half of the railing of the stairs was badly damaged, and there was no way they were getting through that door.

“Are you okay?” Ryder remembered to be polite.

“Yeah, you”? Reyes asked her in return.

“Yeah, we won’t get through that door anymore,” Ryder pointed to the way where the blast came from.

“Ryder, Mr. Vidal,” SAM spoke.

“Let me guess,” Ryder said thinking about what has happened. “Peebee and Vetra need help.”

“That is correct.”

“Ready to walk into a trap?” she asked Reyes. If this was any other situation she would tell him that she told him so. But this isn’t any other situation. Her team needed her help.

“Let’s go.”

When they opened the door they already had their weapons ready.

Peebee and Vetra were held at gunpoint. All around them were Angara that pointed their guns at them.

“Roekaar,” Ryder said more to herself than anyone else.

“That is correct,” one of the Angara males said.

They were ordered to hand their weapons over and did what they were told.

Ryder was reminded of what she told Reyes directly after they’ve dealt with the murders, but also what she thought. She felt anger, not only to Reyes but to herself as well. Had they handled it correctly they wouldn’t have been in this mess.

“What do you want?” Ryder asked.

“You murdered Farah,” he said. “How does it feel to have all those people’s blood on your hands?”

_Awful. They are dead because we didn’t handle the situation correctly. _

Reyes’ eyes widened when he looked at a certain Angara and to Ryder, it seemed like he recognized her. Betrayal was read throughout Reyes’ expression.

“Donele,” Reyes recalled her name. “You were the one that led me here.” Reyes’ eyes burned with rage. “Why?”

“Why?” she repeated his question as if the answer was obvious. “I’ve lost so much thanks to the kett. I tried to trust your species but it’s clear you can’t be trusted.”

Donele had her own perspective, and maybe she tried. But Ryder also knew that it’s hard to have your mind changed if you were closed-minded. You need to be open-minded. Willing to see that you were wrong. At least be open to the possibility. But Ryder also knew nothing about Donele. Except for the fact that she and Reyes worked together.

And Kadara wasn’t especially the best place for this. It wasn’t a secret that the Angara wasn’t exactly happy with how Sloane ran things. One thing that Farah reminded her when she took their weapons.

It was possible that if Ryder was in the same position she might’ve felt the same way. Perspective was everything. She saw it so many times before.

Would she have betrayed Reyes if she was in the same position as Donele?

Ryder didn’t know. People’s pasts can shape them into the people they are today. Her past certainly did, and she was pretty sure Reyes’ past did as well. Maybe that’s why he’s always so secretive.

Secrets can be bad though. Ryder had secrets, and she always had the view that every person had their secrets. Of course, people had the right to have them. And yes, she hated secrets but only if it gets in the way of other people. When it can make a situation worse than it already is.

“I know things in Kadara isn’t exactly how it should be, but we can be trusted,” Ryder tried to reassure her but she had a feeling it would be in vain.

Donele looked at Ryder as if she saw her for the first time. She gave Ryder a look of hatred. As if everything that went wrong with her life was Ryder’s fault. “I wasn’t talking to you Pathfinder,” she spit out each word. As if the words didn’t belong in her mouth.

But Ryder ignored her, “Is that why the smugglers were targeted because Reyes is one?”

Reyes gave her a dirty look as if she just spilled all of his secrets to his worst enemies. And she was the one that betrayed him.

“What?” she asked in response. “It’s pretty obvious you’re a smuggler.” _And the person who betrayed you was working with you. _Or at least that’s what Ryder thought. Nobody denied or confirmed it, so she needed to make conclusions of her own.

“There could be another reason, you don’t know,” he answered. But it sounded like a type of answer someone would give to deny the truth that was staring them straight in the face. Because if that was true it would change everything.

And Reyes might show the mask that he didn’t care about anything but himself, but Ryder could see through it. It was a way to protect himself from others. Why she wasn’t exactly sure yet. But then again, it wasn’t as if she knew him for years and years.

As much as Ryder didn’t want her actions to cause other people unnecessary pain, he didn’t want that either.

“It was a way to catch your attention and get information,” the Angara male said. The whole conversation with Donele made Ryder forget that there were other Angaras in the room.

“So instead of writing or calling, you murder people to catch our attention?” Ryder asked the rhetorical question. “Writing and calling is really much less work. You should think about that the next time.”

There wouldn’t be the next time if Ryder could help it though.

“These people sited with your kind,” Donele said.

“So have you,” Reyes said. “You were on our side once.” He was, of course, talking of Donele. How he knew that she was from the start with them and not the Roekaar Ryder didn't know.

It didn't matter.

It was now or never.

“How far are they?” Ryder asked SAM through their private channel.

“I am unable to reach the Lieutenant.”

That’s not good. Ryder hoped wherever Cora was she would get here in time. Even if they could take on the Roekaar they needed to have an after plan. And for that Ryder needed Cora’s help.

Ryder didn't feel comfortable walking into a trap knowingly. So she contacted Cora ordering her to get a second team ready.

“You want me to do what now?” Cora sighed when Ryder called her.

Ryder knew better to repeat herself. “Can you do it?” Ryder said with a hint of irritation.

Ryder had no reason to be irritated with Cora, but it was the whole situation with the mission.

She tried calling Reyes on her way towards the base but there was no pick-up. So Ryder went forward with her plan.

They would've needed a rover. Ryder wasn't sure where in Kadara she would get one but it was better than nothing.

The problem was all of this seemed too familiar. But, it was also a second chance where Ryder could make things right. Where things didn’t need to end badly.

She activated her omni-blade and stabbed the nearest Angara. Where she was worried that Reyes might not be ready for this, he was. She wasn’t sure if he kept an eye on her movements.

She moved fast with her hand-to-hand combat. She used her biotics where she saw fit.

But, it wasn't enough.

“We'll have to make a run for it,” Reyes said in the excitement of combat.

“What?” The thought came on to Ryder as well, but Cora was on her way. “We'll be fine.”

“Not if you don't have a backup plan,” Reyes said and for a split second where neither Ryder nor Reyes had an opponent to fight they just stared at each other. And Reyes knew. “You do, don't you?”

Ryder couldn't help to feel guilty and she couldn't be quite sure if it was clear to Reyes. Because if she intended to or not she didn't work together. She did this on her own.

Even if she couldn't get a hold of Reyes.

“You didn't respond,” she started to explain after she Threw an Angara in the corner. “Cora is on her way.”

Reyes picked up a pistol and threw it at Ryder. Catching it just in time Ryder saw it's a model she liked. “Let's make it count,” Reyes said.

There was a lot of Roekaar. Every corner they turned someone came with an attack.

“Finally,” Peebee said after Ryder shot the Angara next to her, “You guys decided to stop your bickering and fight. Vetra and I could only do that much.”

If Ryder didn't know Peebee as well as she did right then she would've thought she wasn't serious. But she recognized the mix of seriousness and playfulness.

“Not that I enjoy a good fight,” Vetra said when she got the chance, “but how far is Cora?”

“SAM"? Ryder asked. But there was no such luck.

“Uh… no answer,” Peebee guessed.

“SAM?” Ryder asked again with rising panic.

“That's never a good sign,” Reyes said. “That's why I didn't get the call from you.”

“No, that wouldn’t explain it,” Ryder said. “I could’ve talked with him sooner.”

* * *

It wasn’t long until Cora and 2 others came. Together they fought the Roekaar.

Twice Ryder needed to take another weapon from a dead Roekaar. She felt bad that things ended like it did. However, this time the leader was taken alive in the Initiative’s custody. He would travel with the Tempest to the Nexus. It would be up to the leadership to decide what to do with him. It was out of Ryder’s hands.

It was sad, but yet not the ending. No side won. Except maybe fear. Fear had more power over people than they may realize. The Roekaar wasn’t done with Kadara by a long shot.

Somehow the Roekaar achieved to block Ryder and SAM’s signal. The Roekaar knew more about SAM than Ryder thought, but she wasn’t worry. They weren’t the true enemy. The Archon was.

“So, that was quite the day,” Reyes said when Ryder checked up on him in his VIP room.

“Yeah,” Ryder said calmly. Or at least that was what she appeared to be. The truth was she wasn’t calm inside. She was angry, she felt guilty. Because all those deaths, were on her hands.

Even though she checked in at Lexi she still felt sore and uncomfortable. She would feel like this for days to come.

Ryder talked to Tann. The leadership didn’t precisely see it as she did. _They were just smugglers_, Tann said. As if their lives didn’t matter. He also mentioned that luckily it wasn’t on another planet. This just made Ryder angrier. Because their lives mattered just as much as the people that was posted on Eos.

“At least that ended well,” Reyes said. And this time Reyes’ calmness frustrated her even more.

“How can you be so calm right now?” Ryder asked. “You just learned people you worked with was tortured and killed because of how we handled things with the Roekaar. And you’re just handling things if it was just another mission.”

“Because it is just another mission,” Reyes surprised her with his answer.

_What!?_ Their actions had consequences and Reyes just treated it like this outcome was normal. Just a normal day at work. They failed. More people got hurt because of them.

“Don’t you think this could’ve gotten even a little better?” Ryder asked. She wanted, no needed, to understand Reyes’ reasons because that didn’t make sense to her.

“Well, of course.” He answered in such a manner that made Ryder think he thought about this the whole time. “Those people died because of my actions…”

“…Our actions,” Ryder corrected. “I have as much blame in it as you.”

“Our actions…” he went on. “It doesn’t help if we wallow over our regrets. Our mistakes. It won’t change anything.”

Ryder couldn’t help to think on what Reyes said. His answer surprised her. It was as if she saw a new version of Reyes Vidal nobody else could see.

“We do better tomorrow?” Ryder asked. There was a glint of hope in her chest. And she couldn’t be sure if Reyes saw it or not.

“We do better tomorrow.”

That made her sure that he did.

“Every mission is important,” Reyes’ wise words continued. “You would be a fool not to see it.”

Somehow Ryder felt insulted, because unfortunately this wasn’t how she have always seen it. Yes, her work was important but there was so many tasks that felt meaningless at the end of the day.

But Ryder had to admit it. Reyes was right. Everything counts.

Even the meaningless tasks.

Ryder couldn’t help to smile. “You’re right,” she admitted out loud.


End file.
